Google is among a growing list of technology heavyweights who plan to face off against Apple's iPad with their own modern interpretations of a tablet computing device, according to the New York Times.

The newspaper reported Sunday that Google has been "exploring the idea of building its own slate, an e-reader that would function like a computer."

The initiative appears to be progressing beyond the conceptual stages, with chief executive Eric Schmidt reportedly talking up the device to his friends during a recent party out in Los Angeles.

According to the second hand comments, the device will exclusively run the search giant's Android operating. Google has reportedly been conducting research under "stealth mode" with a handful of publishers who are helping the company evaluate methods of delivering eBooks, magazines and other content to users through the device.

Since introducing its iPad earlier this month, Apple has gone on to sell more than a half million of the devices even before it's begun shipments of models that will include 3G connectivity in addition to standard WiFi hardware.

Nope. These guys know the growth curve is in mobile. These new devices will eventually sub-plant traditional PCs. Just like the telecom land line business is dying a slow death because of mobile so will the traditional PC over time.

Big surprise ! Google, your reputation of being innovative is wearing thin.
Google Maps was the last thing that made me go "wow" and that as an acquisition and many moons ago ! Marketers could categorize you in the "me too" segment now. Of course, make sure to use your legions of open source developers to catch up and copy Apple, the true innovator.

What Steve Jobs said about Microsoft could be applied to Google:
"The only problem with Microsoft is they just have no taste, they have absolutely no taste, and what that means is - I don't mean that in a small way I mean that in a big way. In the sense that they they don't think of original ideas and they don't bring much culture into their product ..."

Nope. These guys know the growth curve is in mobile. These new devices will eventually sub-plant traditional PCs. Just like the telecom land line business is dying a slow death because of mobile so will the traditional PC over time.

I think that the iPad is the birth of a whole new class of device which will eventually cover a huge range of uses both in the home and the workplace. The potential market for these devices is massive and Apple couldn't possibly cater for all the variations required, even if they wished to (which I doubt). Therefore there is plenty of scope for other device manufacturers to come to the party, and if they can come up with something half decent there is no reason why they couldn't happily flourish in such a diverse market, albeit a diverse market where Apple sets the standard.

Believe nothing, no matter where you heard it, not even if I have said it, if it does not agree with your own reason and your own common sense.Buddha

But that is not hardware. Google has now entered into two of Apple's most profitable hardware lines.

Will they come out with a GoogleBook Proo?

All the blogs have been talking about the ARM based tablets for a long time. Google has been talking about the mobile OS for a long time. Apple came out with there tablet first but that does not make it there idea and it is not something that others are copying.

I for one look forward to seeing many of these devices out there and hope it spells the end of the MS dominance of the PC.

Hear Hear! No matter how many features Android has, no matter how much free software Google gives to Android users, no matter if Android takes over the iPhone in market share, we will rest confident that we have better taste.

I like the sarcasm lol Maybe I got carried away there (I am a stock holder too).

So Apple invented the tablet? I didn't know that. I can't believe all the "omg Google sucks because they're copying Apple" comments.

We know the following: Google is probably making a tablet computer. Are they not allowed to do this? Apple did not invent the tablet computer, or the idea of mobile apps, or even an app store.

I think the point is that Google takes little risk and lacks balls to bring an innovative product to market FIRST. So the reference to CTRL-C is pretty fair in my opinion.
There were phones before the iPhone and there were tablets before the iPad but none of them were trend setters. Google sucks because they proclaim to be good and promote open source when the truth is that their search platform is closed.
And they screwed Apple

I think the point is that Google takes little risk and lacks balls to bring an innovative product to market FIRST. So the reference to CTRL-C is pretty fair in my opinion.
There were phones before the iPhone and there were tablets before the iPad but none of them were trend setters. Google sucks because they proclaim to be good and promote open source when the truth is that their search platform is closed.
And they screwed Apple

Google takes little risk? Have you ever heard of the Chrome OS? 7 second start up time, mainly cloud-based? No... that's not risky or a first at ALLLLL. But yeah, any GOOD OS that isn't Windows running on a tablet is a ripoff of Apple.

So Apple invented the tablet? I didn't know that. I can't believe all the "omg Google sucks because they're copying Apple" comments.

We know the following: Google is probably making a tablet computer. Are they not allowed to do this? Apple did not invent the tablet computer, or the idea of mobile apps, or even an app store.

Apple didn't invent the computer... they just made the 1st usable computer
Apple didn't invent the GUI... they just made the 1st usable GUI
Apple didn't invent the MP3 player... they just invented the 1st usable MP3
Apple didn't invent the Smart-Phone... they just invented the 1st usable smart phone
Apple didn't invent the tablet....

usable = best for the rest...

Yeah, Apple wasn't the first in raw technologies, but they have been the typically the first to create the best way to interface with the latest technologies. They (typically) do not introduce a new technology until they've figured out a way to make it work with minimal effort to the consumer.

This is what they do, and with Job's in control, they do it better than anyone.

Companies look like they are copying Apple because they are copying Apple. They aren't necessarily copying the basic technology that Apple is using (because that technology likely has been around for a bit...) They copy Apple's implementation of the technology, which turns out to be more important than the technology itself. Because without it, you have a crappy product.

Apple is an innovator in implementation... combining hardware and software for a final usable appliance.

Nope. These guys know the growth curve is in mobile. These new devices will eventually sub-plant traditional PCs. Just like the telecom land line business is dying a slow death because of mobile so will the traditional PC over time.

No they won't.

And it's "supplant", not "sub-plant". You're not in school anymore. Learn how to spell correctly, not just "how it sounds."

The iPad at least is its own new category of device which fits BETWEEN laptops and phones. It won't supplant either.

Other tablet computers have no new guarantee of success merely because of the iPad.

Big surprise ! Google, your reputation of being innovative is wearing thin.
Google Maps was the last thing that made me go "wow" and that as an acquisition and many moons ago ! Marketers could categorize you in the "me too" segment now. Of course, make sure to use your legions of open source developers to catch up and copy Apple, the true innovator.

What Steve Jobs said about Microsoft could be applied to Google:
"The only problem with Microsoft is they just have no taste, they have absolutely no taste, and what that means is - I don't mean that in a small way I mean that in a big way. In the sense that they they don't think of original ideas and they don't bring much culture into their product ..."

How true. Maybe it is time to sell of google shares. The price seems high given that they are slowly loosing their edge.

I guess the real news here is that it won't be running Chrome OS. The web browser turned operating system has apparently reached its limits even before being completed. I mean, what's its market beyond this?

Anyway, can we please stop calling these things "slates"? I mean it was funny seeing all those manufacturers prematurely positioning themselves close to the mythical "iSlate". But it should be clear now that without Apple's marketing force the name won't catch on. And it's silly for observers trying to participate in an attempted rebranding of the tablet computer genre.

Apple didn't invent the computer... they just made the 1st usable computer
Apple didn't invent the GUI... they just made the 1st usable GUI
Apple didn't invent the MP3 player... they just invented the 1st usable MP3
Apple didn't invent the Smart-Phone... they just invented the 1st usable smart phone
Apple didn't invent the tablet....

I think you forgot the most important thing.

Apple is the first to sell more then 300.000 internet devices without anyone seeing the device. That is pretty good for a device that doesn't play half of the internet content.

Now that is a 1st.

Don't get me wrong I think the Ipad is cute, and I like Apple products but all this gushing, give me a break it's just a company.

So Apple invented the tablet? I didn't know that. I can't believe all the "omg Google sucks because they're copying Apple" comments.

We know the following: Google is probably making a tablet computer. Are they not allowed to do this? Apple did not invent the tablet computer, or the idea of mobile apps, or even an app store.

Since the Newton, Apple has been the thought leaders in this field. It's true they had a dry spell for awhile in there between the death of the Newton and eMate and the birth of the iPhone, but Apple has a pretty long history in the space.

Google shareholders are not going to be happy, either. Ever since the introduction of the Nexus One, GOOG shares have been down a lot. In terms of sales, the Nexus One has been a flop !! Google is not a hardware company. Why are they bothering with developing hardware products?

Google knows how to do desktop search. Unfortunately, there is no evidence that they know how to do anything else.

Apple didn't invent the computer... they just made the 1st usable computer
Apple didn't invent the GUI... they just made the 1st usable GUI
Apple didn't invent the MP3 player... they just invented the 1st usable MP3
Apple didn't invent the Smart-Phone... they just invented the 1st usable smart phone
Apple didn't invent the tablet....

usable = best for the rest...

Yeah, Apple wasn't the first in raw technologies, but they have been the typically the first to create the best way to interface with the latest technologies. They (typically) do not introduce a new technology until they've figured out a way to make it work with minimal effort to the consumer.

This is what they do, and with Job's in control, they do it better than anyone.

Companies look like they are copying Apple because they are copying Apple. They aren't necessarily copying the basic technology that Apple is using (because that technology likely has been around for a bit...) They copy Apple's implementation of the technology, which turns out to be more important than the technology itself. Because without it, you have a crappy product.

Apple is an innovator in implementation... combining hardware and software for a final usable appliance.

I love Apple just as much as the rest guy (except for the app store censorship), but I'm not trying to argue they are great innovators. But what exactly is Google stealing from Apple here? All we know is they're making a freaking tablet.

And just because Google isn't retarded like Microsoft or a billion other companies that try and fail doesn't mean they are copying Apple. There are plenty of features in Android that iPhone doesn't have. Speech to text, google navigation, google voice integration. If I want a specific phone # to go right to voicemail between 9 and 10 pm tonight, I can have it do that. If I want them to hear a custom voicemail message, I can do that. I can have them ALWAYS go to voicemail. It even transcribes the voice mail for me. I can log online and redirect all my phone calls to my home phone or another number if i want. Can iPhone do that? Is that not innovative?

And what were a couple of the first great apps for iPhone again? Google Maps and YouTube. What would iPhone have been without those? You'd have a browser, calendar, address book, etc. Wow.

Google is a strong innovator and they offer real value to the customer. Soon they'll be integrating VoIP with Google Voice too, so Android users can almost certainly expect unlimited voice and texting via a data connection.

The only resemblance I see between Android and iPhone is that there is a central app store/market (which have been around before iPhone) and the alignment of app icons on the screen.

That sounds like the strategy that the Japanese had starting in the 1960's.

They didn't innovate anything - they took other people's ideas and tweaked them.

They make products that feel very different from their competitors in both the way they're interacted with and the way they fit into one's life, and they do it very profitably, so Apple has to be innovating SOMETHING. Having a retention rate on a mass-market product of above 90% proves people find something unique in it that Apple has brought to the table. I understand that you have trouble understanding or imagining what form that innovation might take-- it's a lot harder to quantify these things once you leave the checklist-style, requirements-driven world.